When a Company Gathers Info About You, Is that Invasion of Privacy?

If someone shadowed your digital footprints, making notes of who you became a "fan" of on social networks, keeping records where you were checking-in via mobile devices, compiling your data to decipher your intent, would you consider that collection to be tracking your personal info? If that same entity followed you home and gathered more info on what your interests were, would you feel a bit like you were being stalked or your privacy invaded? What if that so-called stalker were not interested in you personally, just the how's of making money off your "intent"?

Microsoft and others have invested $61 million in Adchemy advertising technology. Microsoft entered into an "expanded technology partnership" with Adchemy that will deepen Adchemy IntentMap technology to "help Microsoft adCenter customers create more relevant ads based on consumer intent." According to Rik van der Kooi, corporate vice president of the Microsoft Advertising Business Group, "Microsoft Advertising is committed to enriching the online ad experience for consumers and helping deliver more effective campaigns and higher ROI for advertisers and agencies. The key to this is to have a deeper understanding of consumer intent so that the ads users see are engaging and relevant."